Let the Streaming Wars Begin

In a world saturated in smartphones, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is frantically searching for a revenue boost to supplement that next iPhone upgrade you’ve been putting off for the past 18 months.

To combat skidding iPhone sales, Tim Cook is going after Netflix Inc. (NADSAQ:NFLX) in the streaming space, he announced at a special event Monday morning.

Apple’s better-late-than-never streamer is dubbed Apple TV+. Starting this fall, the service will feature original series and movies from household-name stars such Steve Carrell, Jason Mamoa, Steven Spielberg, and Oprah Winfrey. Wherever Oprah goes, big bucks follow — so we know Apple isn’t messing around here…

The service will be available across the entire Apple ecosystem including smart TVs and Mac computers. It will all be ad-free and downloaded shows and movies will be available offline. While pricing is still TBD, I suspect Apple will charge a similar monthly rate to Netflix.

Apple shares are up a couple bucks following the announcement — yet so are shares of Netflix. In fact, Netflix stock is crushing Apple so far this year. Netflix’s snapback move has netted year-to-date gains of more than 36%, while Apple is up 20% over the same timeframe.

While 20% gains during the first quarter along is certainly nothing to scoff at, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if Apple caught up to tech’s momentum leaders.

Consider the new projects in the works:

Apple TV+

A revamped Apple News+ that hopes to become the be-all and end-all of news apps. The new app is $9.99 a month and includes 300+ magazine titles and an entirely new reading interface for all the various Apple handheld devices.

Apple Pay’s new credit card partnership with Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS)

While these projects don’t necessarily pack the shock-and-awe of the new product launches of the Steve Jobs era, they could certainly become major money-makers that could send the stock back to new highs.

When it comes to your trading portfolio, I still like Netflix for a short-term move higher, while Apple remains one of our core longer-term positions. I expect big things out of both stocks moving forward…

Meanwhile, online retail giant Amazon is courting a very different kind of customer.

When it’s late at night and you’ve had a few cocktails, you might just log onto Amazon.com for a little drunk shopping, according to a new survey…

“Shoppers spent an average of $444 per year on purchases they bought while they were drinking beer, wine or liquor, according to the survey of more than 2,000 alcohol-drinking adults,” The Hustle reports, via MarketWatch. “Of the purchases they made, 85% were from Amazon. The average age of respondents was 36, with an income of $92,000, more than twice the national average. Women were slightly more likely to shop drunk: 80% said they had done it, compared to 78% of men. But men spent more money than women on their drunken purchases: an average of $448 a year compared to $441.”

Back in the day, you had to sit around waiting for a good infomercial to air on late-night television before you could call in a drunk purchase. Thanks to Amazon, you can buy whatever your tipsy heart desires no matter what time of day. We truly are living in a technological utopia!

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